If I Go Down: The Power of Friendship
by fnl
Summary: Join Harry's parents and their friends as they struggle through their seven years at Hogwarts and learn that there's no bond tighter than that of friendship.


_I've just got a few quick things to say about this. First, I own nothing, obviously. Second, this is written pre DH, so none of the stuff that Harry learned about his parents in DH will be included. Thirdly, this is going to span the seven years Lily and James spent in Hogwarts. I may write a sequel but that's way in the future, so we'll see about that when it comes to it.  
Regarding updates, I'll do the best I can, and I'm going to try and write a few chapters in advance, but I'm a terrible updater. School is crazy, all the time (I spend 9/8 of my time doing schoolwork, no seriously, I have to create time to finish it), but I've been planning this story for ages, so I don't think I'll give up on it.  
If you want to drop me a review, please, please, do. I respond to each review, so you know I appreciate them. If you have any questions, you can visit my Meet the Author thread (linked on my author's page)_.  
_Otherwise: enjoy!_

** If I Go Down: The Power of Friendship**  
Chapter 1: The Beginning

* * *

_The finest years I ever knew were all the years I had with you_  
- Bread, _Everything I Own_

If there was one thing that James Potter had ever been certain of, it was that he was going to love Hogwarts. The confident young boy had earnestly disregarded the fears of not making friends, failing his classes, and getting sorted into Slytherin because he was going to finally, finally learn about magic.

For years, he had watched his parents start fires with a flick of their wand, clean rooms with a softly uttered spell, and perform countless other tasks James couldn't wait to learn how to do, and he was finally getting his chance.

As he walked through the barrier between platforms nine and ten for the first time and saw the scarlet steam engine stretched out in front of him, he turned to his parents with a wide grin on his face. "It's actually happening, isn't it?" he asked them excitedly, eyes wide.

Mrs. Potter laughed. "Yes it is," she reassured her son with a smile. "And you're going to have the best time of your life!"

James turned his attention on his father who was also smiling at him. "Don't follow all the rules," he advised with a wink.

James' mum laughed. "Follow most, though," she warned. "I don't want to hear anything about duels in the trophy room."

James rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mum," he said dutifully, turning again to look at the magnificent train behind him. "Can I go now?" he asked, trying not to sound too eager to get away from his parents. It wasn't that he wanted to leave them, but this was a part of his life that he had been looking forward to since he could remember.

Mrs. Potter's smile faded a bit and she stared down at her son. "Of course," she said, bending slightly to hug him. "Be good," she said, pulling away slightly and looking him in the eye. "And write often, you've got no excuse not to now."

James nodded and wrapped his arms around his mother's neck again. She was slightly taken aback, usually he seemed to be slightly reluctant to hug her. "Bye, Mum," he said quietly in her ear.

Turning to his dad, James wrapped his arms around his father's middle. Chuckling, Mr. Potter too kneeled down so he was level with his son. "Have fun," he said sincerely, ruffling the young boy's hair.

James looked at the two of his parents, somewhat expectantly. "Well, goodbye, then," he bade, as if unsure of what to say. Then his face brightened. "Oh, and thank you for Ernie!" he exclaimed, referring to the owl he had been given as a going away present. "I'll write tomorrow, I promise!"

His parents exchanged knowing looks, quite sure that their son would be too preoccupied to write them for at least a week, but smiled at him anyway. "Have a good trip!" Mrs. Potter said as her son gave her and her husband one last fleeting hug. "And if you need anything, don't hesitate to write.

James nodded, and boarded the train. Looking around, he saw no one familiar, which he found a bit strange since he knew many Hogwarts students through his parents who were active in the wizarding community. Shrugging, and growing a bit nervous, he began searching for someone he knew, or an empty compartment, whichever came first.

After having travelled the length of the train and finding neither of these, he reluctantly trudged his way towards a compartment in which two nervous looking students were sitting. Walking in, he glanced cautiously at the dark haired, round faced boy and shy looking girl sitting there. "Do you mind if I sit down?" he asked, gesturing to an empty seat. Both shook their heads, and James struggled to store his trunk in the overhead compartment.

The round faced boy helped him out when he saw that the trunk was too heavy for James to lift. "I'm Martin Owens," he introduced when they had finished. "Who are you?"

"James Potter," he said, studying the boy. "Are you a first year?"

Martin nodded. "And so is she."

James looked at the girl he was sitting next to. "I'm Mariana Semple," she said, smiling at him.

A silence descended upon the three. "Are you Muggleborn?" Martin asked finally, the question directed at James.

James shook his head. "Are you?"

Martin nodded. "I've never even seen magic before," he admitted. "I'm a bit scared, actually."

Mariana nodded as well. "My sister was scared when she first went to Hogwarts as well, but she said it's a lot of fun. I'm Muggleborn, too," she added, seeing James' curious look.

James was about to ask if the two of them knew anything about the Hogwarts houses when the door to the compartment was pushed forward, and a bright eyed blonde boy walked in, dragging a trunk behind him. "Mind if I sit down?" he asked. "Everywhere else's full."

Martin shook his head and the three of them managed to get the boy's trunk into the overhead compartment. The blonde boy sat down and the compartment's original three occupants introduced themselves.

"I'm Remus Lupin," he said. "I'm a first year as well."

"Are you pureblood?" James asked, hoping to have someone in the compartment who knew at least as much about magic as he did.

"Half," Remus admitted. "But my Mum and Dad both went to Hogwarts. Mum's Muggleborn," he added hastily, seeing the confused looks. "Do you three know anything about the houses?"

"I'm pureblood," James clarified, "So yeah."

The other two shook their heads (Mariana said she knew a bit about them, but only the stuff her sister had told her), and Remus explained about the four different student divisions. When he finished, Martin declared that he'd prefer Raveclaw.

Mariana mused about it for a second. "Raveclaw sounds alright," she said. "But I think I'd like to be in Hufflepuff, like my sister."

"What year's your sister in?" James asked before saying confidently that he'd prefer Gryffindor. Remus nodded his agreement.

"Third," Mariana said. "Her name's Abigail, but we call her Abby."

James nodded, and Remus said, "I hope we're in the same house. I like you guys."

The other three agreed with him, despite their preference to different houses. "Have you guys met any other first years?" Martin asked.

Remus said no at the same time Mariana said, "I took the first compartment that looked like it was full of first years, so no." She smiled slightly. "I'm a bit shy."

James nodded. "I'm not really shy," he said. "But I did the same thing."

As if on cue, the compartment door opened up again, and a pale faced, dark haired boy who looked like he hadn't seen a shower in weeks stuck his head in. "There are people in here," he said to the people behind him, who James couldn't see.

"Does that matter?" a loud voice asked from behind him, and a dark haired girl pushed her way to the front. She appeared to be quite a bit older, possibly a fifth or sixth year. "Aw," she said when she saw who was occupying the compartment. "Ickle firsties." For a moment, she surveyed the four first years who were now feeling a bit scared, then barked, "Out!"

The four scrambled to their feet. None of them looked happy about getting kicked out of their compartment, but the crowd of older students looked rather menacing and like they wouldn't have a problem jinxing a few first years. Just as they were going to grab their trunks, a greasy haired blond boy entered the compartment. "Bellatrix," he gasped, out of breath. "I found an empty compartment."

"So did we, Rosier," said the boy who appeared to be the oldest of the group. He was tall and blonde, with a smooth drawl. "We'll spend the train ride in here."

The boy called Rosier looked a bit nervous. "I've left our trunks in that compartment so no one would take it when I came to get you."

Bellatrix spun around, looking furious. "You left our trunks there?" she said. "Where'd you get an empty compartment, anyway? There were none left!"

A sly smile crossed Rosier's face. "I kicked out a couple of first year girls," he admitted. "It didn't take much to scare them away."

Bellatrix looked murderous as she spun around to face James and his new friends. "You got lucky this time," she snarled. "Don't expect it to happen again."

As Bellatrix led her friends out of the compartment, James could hear a collective sigh of relief being let out. The four waited for everyone else to leave before they sat down, but as they watched the last of the group pass by the compartment door, he thought he saw a lanky dark haired boy stare longingly in at the four first years. When he looked up again, though, the boy was gone, and he figured he must have been seeing things.

It was a while before anyone said anything. Finally, Martin spoke up. "Who were _they_?" he asked, staring at James expectantly.

James shrugged his shoulders. "I hope someone hexes them, though," he said. "Remus, do you know who they were?"

Remus shook his head. "Never seen any of them before in my life."

"And my sister's never mentioned anyone like them," Mariana added, happy to be able to contribute to the conversation.

There was a moment of quiet before Remus asked, "So does anyone know how we get sorted? I asked my parents, but they said they wanted it to be a surprise."

Happy to be talking of lighter, happier things, the three boys and one girl talked and laughed until the sky grew dark and the torches came on in the train. A girl poked her head into the compartment as the train wound through a small village. "I'm Amanda," she said brightly. "I'm one of the Gryffindor prefects. You're all first years, I guess?" She paused to let them answer. "You're best to get your robes on now, we'll be reaching the station soon. You can leave your trunks here, they'll be brought up to the castle later."

The four new Hogwarts students looked at each other, wide smiles gracing all of their faces. "I'm excited!" James said as he pulled his robes out of his trunk and threw them over his clothes. "I can't wait to see it!"

Martin looked as if he was going to burst with anticipation, as did Remus, but Mariana looked a bit nervous. "You'll be fine," Remus reassured her. "My dad said that Hogwarts is the best time of your life!"

Though the young girl looked slightly brightened by this news, she still looked a bit nervous. "It'll be a blast, you'll see!" James promised her as the train came to a grinding halt.

The four new friends climbed off the train and into the unusually cool night, wrapping their robes tighter around them. "Where do we go?" Mariana asked nervously, as they looked around.

"Over there!" James exclaimed suddenly, pointing at a light which appeared to be floating in midair. As they got closer, though, they found that the light was not floating, but was rather being held by a large man who was hollering for all the first years to join him.

"Who's he?" Martin asked in wonder, craning his neck to stare up at the bearded face. He nearly jumped when the man looked down on him.

"Rubeus Hagrid, groundskeeper," he said, his low voice like a growl. "Yer a bunch of firs' years, I take it?"

The four nodded mutely. "You'll want to go wait on the dock," he said, gesturing to a rickety structure that was suspended over a very black and very foreboding lake.

Slowly, they made their way over to the dock which was surrounded by a crowd of students. "I don't want to go on it!" James heard a girl say. "You go first!"

He couldn't blame them. The dock didn't seem to be held up by much of anything. Martin seemed to be having the same thoughts, because he was on the ground, trying to see if there was anything underneath. James laughed and grabbed Martin's collar pulling him up.

"Do you think it's held up by magic?" he asked excitedly, experimentally putting one foot on the wooden structure. When it held, he cautiously wandered a bit further onto the dock. "James, it's held up by magic!" he exclaimed. "It's got to be!" With a grin, he began to jump up and down, testing the stability. Seeing that the dock was apparently safe, the first years followed suit, excitedly talking about how they were going to get to the castle.

Before long, Hagrid was approaching them. "Yeh'll want to get into a boat!" he called over the din of the eleven year olds. "No more'n four to one boat!"

Remus quickly climbed into the boat closest to him, the other four following behind. When all the first years were seated, Martin looked around expectantly. "How're we supposed to -" he was cut off when the boat started moving of his own accord. Looking impressed, he leaned over the side as if expecting to see something propelling them through the water.

Mariana wasn't saying anything, but was taking in her surroundings, wide-eyed. The lake seemed to go on forever, a black endless stretch of water. There was no moon, James noted, which made it hard to see the landscape, but he knew from his parents that there were mountains, hills, and trees surrounding the castle. The boat began to change direction slightly and he heard Hagrid call, from somewhere in the front, "Yeh'll see Hogwarts in just a minute, here."

The chattering that could be heard from the boats stopped as an expectant pause fell on the first years. Suddenly, as if it was rising out of the night, James could see thousands of lit up windows and hundreds of towers defined – barely, but defined nonetheless – against the darkness of the night. There was a collective gasp as they neared the castle and began to get a glimpse of much more than they had on the approach.

"Look at the gates!" one kid said in a hushed whisper to his boat-mates while another earnestly commented on the huge oak doors at the front of the castle.

The boats lurched to a stop and the first years clamoured out, each trying to get to the front of the crowd.

"Follow me," Hagrid said, and started the steep climb up to the castle. Everywhere James looked, he saw something that he wanted to explore, or, at the very least, get a good look at in the daylight. Excited whispers were surrounding him, fingers were pointing, and one boy, who he assumed must be Muggleborn, gasped loudly as an owl flew overhead, and stopped to watch it.

They walked up the wide stairs and Hagrid knocked on the enormous oak doors. An old woman with black hair in a tight bun and a stern face opened them. "Thank you Hagrid," she said. "I'll take it from here."

Hagrid nodded and disappeared into the castle. The old lady surveyed the excited students in front of her. "I am Professor McGonagall. In a moment, you'll be taken into the Great Hall for the sorting," she said. As she explained about the houses, James found his attention wandering to an old tree he saw silhouetted against the light coming from the greenhouses. He jumped when he saw one of the branches hit the ground with a menacing thud before returning to its original position. He was from a magical family, and he had never seen that before.

"What is it?" Remus asked from beside him, having felt his new friend jerk slightly.

James glanced to make sure that McGonagall wasn't watching them. "Nothing," he said, feeling foolish for believing that the tree had actually hit the ground. Trees didn't hit.

Students around him began moving towards the castle, and with a start he realised that McGonagall was finished talking and leading them into the Entrance Hall. She directed them into a small hall where they were to wait for further instructions. Nervous whispers echoed in the stone room, people wondering which house they would be placed in and what they would have to do for it.

"I bet for Ravenclaw, you have to answer a really tough question," James heard one boy say to his friend. "My cousin said it was NEWT level. I'll never get in."

"What do you think we have to do?" he asked Mariana, who now looked slightly green.

She shook her head. "I hope it's not hard."

"Well, what can they expect us to do?" a now nervous looking Martin said. "We haven't learned anything?"

Remus nodded in agreement as McGonagall re-entered the room. "Follow me," she instructed. "The Sorting is about to begin."


End file.
